Mixing Brass

[shakerAU]

I've recorded a song which has a brass backing (Midi) along with the Bass, Drums, Guitar, & Piano.
Trouble is when the Brass comes in it just seems to overpowering and competes with the vocals, if I turn it down it gets lost in the mix.
Tried compressing it but that didn't really seem to help.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks
John

[Whammo]

I guess the simple answer is to arrange the brass so that it compliments the vocals rather than competes with them. Stay out of the vocals immediate range except when you're just passing through, and using brass more as a rhythm element.

[shakerAU]

Originally Posted by Whammo

I guess the simple answer is to arrange the brass so that it compliments the vocals rather than competes with them. Stay out of the vocals immediate range except when you're just passing through, and using brass more as a rhythm element.

The tracks have all been recorded, so I'm seeking advice on how to place the brass in the mix, EQ.

[Ruzz]

Originally Posted by shakerAU

I've recorded a song which has a brass backing (Midi) along with the Bass, Drums, Guitar, & Piano.
Trouble is when the Brass comes in it just seems to overpowering and competes with the vocals, if I turn it down it gets lost in the mix.
Tried compressing it but that didn't really seem to help.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks
John

This sounds like a masking problem to me. The way I'd start is to find out the averaged frequency of the vox and drop that same freq by around 2dB or so (with Q around 2-ish too) from the brass. That should allow the vox to sit with the brass better. (It's hard to offer specific numbers for obvious reasons.)

You may want to get the averaged freq of the brass too - just for comparison purposes.

If the brass is hitting exactly or even close to the same notes as the vox, you have a tough job on your hands but with careful EQing you should be able to succeed. Try not to make the brass sound completely unreal.

Lastly, make sure the brass isn't too close to the vox in the stereo field - I know, that's obvious... but you never know

Hope that helped
Ruzz

[shakerAU]

Thanks Ruzz, I'll give that a try.............

[richiebee]

I'm with Whammo... this is an arrangement issue. What kind of song is it? Brass should not be competing with vocals.

[TheTool]

Yeah post a rough mix. That would help us to see what you can do, and see exactly what the problem is.

[brandondrury]

Trouble is when the Brass comes in it just seems to overpowering and competes with the vocals, if I turn it down it gets lost in the mix.

It does sound like an arrangement problem, but it also sounds like a perspective problem. I can't think of anything that goes from overpowering to "getting lost" by pulling it down 1dB. (3dB can cause this, but not 1dB). So I'd try mixing while focusing on the vocals and see where your brass ends up. I have a feeling that you are wanting everything to sound BIG. That may not be possible with this arrangement.

Brandon